Statement of ILO Director-General Juan Somavia

After the Meltdown: Advancing Living Standards around the Globe in the Wake of the Financial Crisis

Failing financial institutions, frozen credit, volatile stock markets, mounting job losses, and painful cuts in wages are impacting the lives of struggling citizens worldwide. Speaking at the Centre for American Progress, in Washington D.C. (USA), Juan Somavia underlined how the decent work agenda can become a unifying factor in building a coordinated approach to the crisis. "We need a global strategy that can help hundreds of millions of families living in poverty here and around the world to move up new ladders of opportunity. The ILO’s Decent Work Agenda can be a foundation for a global new deal."